Subject line: Basketball TOMORROW (Wed) @ noon
Who's in?
Most recipients would respond in turn. Then, shortly after 12pm each Wednesday, students, faculty, staff and some guests would congregate around the far hoop to prepare for a grueling 90-minutes of up-and-down "bee ball" that often featured some of the top players in the (25-45) age bracket. Certainly, an ego & resume booster! From week to week, different players would have impressive performances, get hurt, be absent, have to leave early, complain about obvious fouls, and even come dressed in unusual attire. Regardless, this was my sanctuary, my safe haven. No matter what sort of week I was having, I could distract myself with this game that I have come to know and adore. I never thought I would experience as much JOY playing with "the guys" as I did during those three years. Players like Phil, Marko, and Odell certainly made me work hard for every rebound, basket and victory; however, the one thing that I did not have to work all that hard at was befriending each one of the guys (and a few brave women, especially Katie). They became my basketball family similar to what may be expected amongst a group of high school or college teammates who resolve their differences and coalesce by the end of the season. I was fortunate to have an athletic community such as this one and I am glad that it has continued to grow and remain competitive ever since I left JCU.
(Today, for the first time in over nine months, I returned to the JCU Intramural gymnasium where I played some 3-on-3 pickup basketball just like old times, and boy, did I have a blast!)
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